The Delaware ledger. (Newark, Del.) 1879-19??, 1887-06-18
OUR CINDERELLA.
by THOMAS DUNN ENGLISH.

She was our nursemaid and Il
lactotum. We thought we could
scarcely get along without her. And
we called her "Our Cinderella" ="
playfully, and not at all reproach-
fully. Our cook had gone off, and,
my wife being sick at the time, Bet
ty undertook to get our breakfast
She succeeded after fashion but
she so covered her usually neat per-
son with ashes and coal smut that
my little daughter, Chrissy, called
her Cinderella, and the name stuck.
The way we got Betty was this
Our boy baby, little Marmaduke,
had to be out in the air, and my
wife, Mrs. Judkins-I am John Jud-
kins, scotsman and florist, successor
to Jarmin & Judkins-suggested
that, as the seed shop was doing a
good business and the greenhouses
were run to their full extent, as we
were able to keep Il cook and II
chanbermaid, we might as well go
farther and have a regular French
bonne, with ribbons and n cap like
Il new pudding bag, TO wheel little
Mamaduke on the sidewalk. Thus
we could add to the comfort of the
family and show an admiring pop
ulation the prize baby of the period
growing thus two plants on one
stalk. suggested in turn that we
had better move out to the garden
where there was a handsome house
for which | had not been able to Sc
cure a tenant. Here my better halt
interposed Il veto. Mrs. Judkins
had been born and bred in the city
and in the city she would live and
die. Like her father, the late Mr..
Jarman, there was no overcoming
her once expressed resolution.
At length this matter was settled
Il compromise | didn't get the
French bonne, but | came upon a
German one, a sort of amateur nurse
as it were. A young girl from Carl
rushe, who spoke English very well,
but II little stilted, as she had learn
ed it at school, was looking for a sit
uation as teacher. She had good
recommendations and was vouched
for as respectable by the German
consul, who was an occasional custo-
mer of mine. In default of some
thing better she agreed to teach
Crissy German and the piano, and
to give the baby attention and an
airing when we thought proper. So
engaged her at very reasonable
wages.
Her name was Elisabeth Raein-
feldt; and so we translated her
name into Elizabeth, and from that
to Betty. The only drawback was
that she was very pretty and grace
full, and had the smallest feet and
hands ! had ever seen on Il girl
but that just fitted the baby, who
was the very-no matter every
one admitted his beauty. She grew
to be invaluable, for she turned out
to be good seamstress, and was
ready to turn her hand to anything.
Bit by bit we got her history
Her father, who was IL cadet of Il
good family, had married the daugh.
ter of Il mechanic, when the head Of
the house cast him off. He had OBJ
tanned Il situation as librarian al
Carlruhc, and there he managed tC
live comfortably and educate his
only daughter, who had lost hei
when only five years old Then
when he died, the baron, her uncle
would have recognized her, but she
resented her fathers treatment and
rejected his offer of home. Be
lieving she could earn her living in
America as a teacher, she had sold
household effects left her home and
came to this country with IL slender
purse, whose contents were nearly
exhausted when we got her.
Among my customers was Mr.
Paul Exton, II rich bachelor, who
was a great flower fancier and an
amateur gardener, with n conserva-
tory large enough for a greenhouse
and a gIeat desire to grow new vari-
eties of plants. He was not much
over thirty, but had so bronzed him.
self by travel that he looked older
When he grew anything novel,
which he rarely did, he always gave
me the stock plant to propagate
from, so that he was very useful
and he got in the habit of dropping
in the shop and chatting once OF
twice a week, or even oftener, and
we grew quite intimate. One day
it was just two months after Betty
had come to us-EXton came in the
shop. lie was in Il state of excite.
ment, and had evidently not come
to buy or talk plants.